Cubs rough up Lincecum in win over Giants
Baseball Betting Lines
08/11/2010 - San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rookie Starlin Castro drove in three runs to pace the Chicago Cubs over the San Francisco Giants, 8-6, in the second test of a four-game set from AT&T Park.
Kosuke Fukudome hit a two-run homer for the Cubs, who snapped a four-game skid. Mike Fontenot drove in two runs for Chicago, which got an RBI from Aramis Ramirez.
Ryan Dempster (10-8) went 6 2/3 innings in the start, allowing four runs -- three earned -- on eight hits. The right-hander, who fanned three and walked two, has won five of his last seven decisions.
Buster Posey went 3-for-5 with four RBI for the Giants, who have lost five of seven and sit 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Padres in the NL West. Travis Ishikawa and Pablo Sandoval each drove in a run.
Tim Lincecum (11-6) lasted just four frames, giving up six runs on eight hits. The two-time defending NL Cy Young honoree also struck out four and walked one.
The Cubs scored four runs off Lincecum in the top of the first. Tyler Colvin led off with a single, stole second, and crossed the plate on Castro's base hit. Castro stole second, advanced to third on Micah Hoffpauir's groundout, and raced home on Ramirez's single. Fukudome followed with a two-run homer to right.
San Francisco got a run back in the bottom half. Edgar Renteria singled and Aubrey Huff reached base on Blake DeWitt's fielding error to put men on first and second. Posey's infield single plated Renteria. Pat Burrell, though, grounded into an inning-ending double play.
The Giants got an RBI single from Ishikawa in the second to make it a 4-2 game. Juan Uribe doubled, advanced to third on a passed ball, and scored on Ishikawa's hit to left field.
Chicago plated two runs in the fourth to take a 6-2 lead. Koyie Hill singled, Dempster singled, and Colvin walked to load the bases with two outs. Castro followed with a two-run single up the middle.
San Francisco cut the gap to two again with a pair of runs in the seventh. With two outs, Emmanuel Burriss singled and Huff walked. Andrew Cashner took over for Dempster on the hill. Posey stepped to the plate and hit a deep fly ball to center. Colvin settled under the ball at the warning track, but the baseball hit off the side of his glove and fell to the ground. Posey was awarded a two-run double on the play, which made it 6-4.
The Cubs, though, got the two runs back in the eighth. Guillermo Mota put men on the corners with two outs. Pinch-hitter Fontenot cleared the bases with a double to right for an 8-4 advantage.
The Giants made things interesting off Carlos Marmol in the ninth. Burriss singled and scored two batters later on Posey's double. Burrell then singled to put men on the corners for Sandoval, who knocked in a run with an infield single. Uribe struck out and Ishikawa grounded out to end the game.
Game Notes
Chicago and San Francisco are meeting for the first time since the Cubs took four of six matchups a year ago, including three of four at AT&T Park...Dempster improved to 4-7 lifetime against the Giants...Lincecum fell to 7-4 in 12 home starts in 2010...San Francisco shortstop Renteria left the game in the fifth inning with a left bicep strain...The Cubs snapped a six-game road skid...Ramirez has 1,000 RBI for his career...Following Monday's game, Chicago recalled infielder Hoffpauir and catcher Welington Castillo from Triple-A Iowa. The club also placed catcher Geovany Soto on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained ligament in his right shoulder and placed infielder Derrek Lee on the bereavement list.
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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract
Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.
NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."
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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.
Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.
According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).
Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.
''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.
Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.
''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''
Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.
”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.
For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.